Method of reducing ores.



N. WIKSTRM.

METHOD 0F RBDUCING GRES.

APPLIOATION FILED JAN. 1s. 1908.-

914,622 n Patented Mar. 9, 1909.

UNITED srArrLrnN euri NILs WIKSTRM, or Hoeness, RUSSIA;

METHO F REDUGING- GRES.

Specification. of Letters Patent.

Patented March 9, 1909.

Application filed Januarygl, 1908. Serial No. 411,130.

To all whom 'it may concern.'

Beit known that I, Nrrs WIKSTRM, of Hgfors,`Finland, Russia, a subjectof the King of Sweden, have invented certain new and usefulvImprovements in' Methdds of Reducing Orcs; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and eXact de scription ef the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertainstornake and l,use the same, reference'being had to the .accompanyingdrawings, and Jto letters or figures of reference marked thereon,

which form apart of this specification. s

A furnace 'for effecting the present method of producing iron isillustrated on the annexed drawing where- A Figure 1 showsa verticalandfFig. 2 a hori- Zontal section. Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate mddifeations of a detail. 'v

` likewise iron-ore and lime or other suitable admixtures are ground tothe required fineness, The finely divided ore with suitable admiXture oflime is fed into compartment 1- of the chargingfunnel and thecoal-powderinto compartment 2 of the charging funnel. By means of thefeeding-wheels 3 and 4 coal and ore are.harged.into the feed-pipe 5 in-The feeding-wheels 3 q ande rotate lndependentof each other so suitableproportions.

.- that the charging of coal and ore may be controlled as desired. Whenthe admixture of ore and coal-powder leaves the lower 'end of tube 5.itis struck by a current of highly heated lair or gas (temperature about1000"- C.) which comesby way ofr nozzle 7, so that i p the admixture ofore andseoal'is blown in.

through thefburner 8 into the fore-furnace 9.

v In the burner 8, in .which thamixture of ore,

4 0 coal and the necessary admixtures are brought into intimate Contactwith the gasor aircurrent, the temperature fand the chemical processesmay varyin proportion to the temperature of the said current land thequantity of\fuel` supplied and with due regard tov whether the productis pig-iron or wrought-J iron. ,l In the fore-furnace 9 heat' mayfor instance be supplied in electrical way, prpvided. the temperamre in theburner 8 is ke' t low.

F The iron collects -onthe'bottom dft e fur nace to about the heightindicatedby 10 and runs through the opening 11 into the annular ervV-shaped furnace 12. The communica- I ,i tion between furnacesv 9 and12 is closed by 5,5- means offbridge 13, so that a: small 'l opening 11arises, through which both theiron as` Coke or charcoal is `powderedqite 'finelyh heating the smelting-mass.

accordincr to vthe quality of iron ore blown int the Dburner 8, withpart9,v coal-powder or iinelydividediron-oxld may'yif desirable,

lbe fed 1n through another feeding device 14 before opening 11, so thatthe gasescoming through fore-furnace 9 spread the ironor coal-powder infurnace 12'.

A surplus of ore may also be introduced inlto furnace 9, so

that a part of this ore passes along into the furnace 12, which is madeso large that the speed of the gas is decreased to sucha degree, thatthe powdered ore gets the opportunity of falling to thebottom 1n orderto melt with the iron-mass fiowing thereon. .Theexhaust gases from thefurnace 12 areled by means ott tubes l5 through the air-heating furnace1'6"I in order to burn there and heat the blast, which is by means of asuitable ventilator pressed through the heating-pipes 17 passingYthrough furnace 16 so'fthat the )last is highly heated on e terin nozzle7. The air may,

of course, a s o be Vieated by any othe'rfordinary heating-,device forblasting-furnaces or glass-works. Thosecombustionfgases which are notvnecessary'for the heating are drawn off4 through sideoutletsv 18 andused for other urposes. 1s jfu'rther heated,` if necessary, by means ofelectricity in such a manner,l that an induetion coil 19.` with core 20and cooling-mantle The melted iron in the furnace 12 21 is arranged/inthe middle of the furnace,

or else, if the furnace is U-shaped,in the man ner indicated in dottedlines 1n 141g. 2, contacts 22 and 23 are arranged, by which the currentis led` directly to the smelfting-mass- The contacts are made hollow,so' that they may bec'ooled by means of vwater-circulation.

The contacts may even in U-'shaped furnacesv also be connected to aninduction-circuit' for 'In annular furnaces a bridgev 24 is arranged;which reaches nearly to the upperv edge of thesmelting-mass, so that thegases coming from 9 are compelled to pass in the right direction throughthe furnace and th ys not enter directly 'into/ the exhaust-pipe 5.

30 duced for reducin the most'easily reducible the ling'the volume, thetemperature andthe pressure ofthe air-cp trical heatin l 'f As shown 1nFig. v3 a tube 30 may eventuall'y' be placed in the prolongation ofburner 8, said tube having'alarger diameterthan the burner and" therebycausing .an injectorlike suct'onv at the extrav tube 31, arranged besidethe'burner 8,'whe're thus ore, coal and air or gas may be introducedanew so that dierent com onents may be given theiiame in tubes 8 an 30,that is, make the iiame reducing or oxidizing as desired, and thuspromote the continuity of theprocess.

As is diagrammatically s own in Fig. 4, two nozzles may also be used.''Thr u h theone nozzle `-0.-- heated carbonio oxi is introrrent as Wellas the elecore entering at saidreductibntaking place in the burner'pipe-,c`. Through.` the othernozzle -dhighly heated air or a gas-mixture isthenblown in,- whereby the heat in the burnerpart .-cand fore-furnace 9is lincreased for reducing `the more diiiicultly reduciblefore as Wellas partly for smelting' tle .mass The different`- pro or- 4of'tions ofair, other gases and ore and coa at thediflerent 4places must bepractically ascertained. i

'As is evident from the foregoing, the prese t method may advantageouslybe used in power for the electric installation and or tlie crushingofthe ore andthe coal, but where the rices of coke and coal are high:

'Caims 1. The method of reducing oresf'which comprises mixinggranulatedore, granulated carbonaceous material and `fluxes, feedingsaidggranulated mixture in a stream, and in'.

`ecting saidstream b meansof a blast of 55. ighly heatedl air t ough acontracted burner and into a closed chamber.v

' 2.' The method of reducing ores which com; prises mixing fine ore,flux and fuel,-feeding the mixture to 'a blast of air`th'erebyfthoroughlymixing the particles withlthe air and roducingcombustion in the mixture so ormed at a burner to reduce the oreY 3. The'method lof reducing ore which comprises mixing fine ore, iiux and fuel,feedingA the mixture to a blastr of air thereby thor- .Besides the abovementioned and at une` such places where there is an amplit de "of oughlymixing the particles with the air and producing combustion `in themixture so formed at a burner in a closed chamber to reduce the ore. i vY 1 4. -The method of reducing ores which comprises mixing the fine ore,flux and fuel, feeding the mixture to 'a\hot blast of air therebythoroughly mixing the particles with the air, and producing combustionin the vmixture so formed at a burner in .a closed chamber to "reducetheore.

5. The method of reducing ores, which' comrlrises mixing fine ore, fluxand fuel, feed.- ing t e mixture substantially transverselyT to` a otblast of .air thereby thoroughly mixing the particles with the air, andproducing combustion in the mixture .so formed ata 'burner in a closedchamber to reduce the ore. 6. 'lhe'method of-l reducing ores,l whichcomprises mixing iine ore, flux and fuel,'feed ing 'the mixture to ablast of air thereby thoroughly mixing the particles with the air,roducmg lcombustion in the mixture so formed in a closed chamber toreducev the, Iore, collectin the fused mass partly in said chamber anYpartly .in a second chamber t communicating 4therewith and supplyingfinely divided refining compounds to the metal. by ablast ofgasesjbetween the two chambers. i

7. The vmethod of, reducing ores, which comprises mixing ne ore, fluxand fuel, feeding thev mixture .t`o av blast. of air thereby ithoroughly mixing the particles with the air, reducing combustion in themixture so lformed in a closed Chambertoreduce the ore, collecting thefusedrnasspartly in said chamber and 'partly in a second chambercommunicaungftherewah, Supplying en 1y divided of gases between the twochambers and sup- 'plyin the heat to the metal in said secondchamer.8..The methodof reducing ores, ,which mg t e mixture substantially',`transversely to 'a hot blast of airtherebyhoroughlyjmixing the particleswiththe air, producing combustion'in the mixture soformed at a burner ina' partly in ta second chamber communicating 'presence' of twosubscribing Witnesses.

' NlLS WIKSTRM.

Witnesses: l H. G. HEDBoM,

" K. Y. LrNDHoLM.

renin'ggcompounds yto vthe metal' by-a blast 105 com rises mixing iineore, flux and fuel, fed- 11'0.

closed chamber, to reduce the ore, collecting l1115i the fused masspartlyinsaidchamber an my invention, l have`signed my name in

